


Gentle Lullaby

by ExtremeExhaustion



Category: Naruto
Genre: Childhood Trauma, Hatake Kakashi Is Trying, Kakashi gets hurt yet again, Kakashi is depressed and traumatized, Lullabies, Parental Hatake Kakashi, Remember that these kids are 12-13, Seeing your mentor almost die is not something you can brush off, Separation Anxiety, Sleepy Cuddles, Team as Family
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-23
Updated: 2021-01-23
Packaged: 2021-03-14 18:21:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,550
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28925016
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ExtremeExhaustion/pseuds/ExtremeExhaustion
Summary: Kakashi does his best to comfort his students after a mission goes wrong and he almost dies. He ends up resorting to something his father used to do for him.
Relationships: Dai-nana-han | Team 7 & Hatake Kakashi
Comments: 3
Kudos: 138





	Gentle Lullaby

**Author's Note:**

> I'm a sucker for found family. Also, I wrote the lullaby myself so it might be a bit rough. Feel free to tell me what you think.

These kids were so much more precious to him than he realized. Kakashi watched the trio as they invaded his apartment after coming back from a stretched-out mission. It ended up taking four days longer than planned. All his pups seemed so worn out. It actually upset the jonin a bit to see them so exhausted. Despite how irritating the kids could be, he found himself growing fond of his team and their shenanigans. What was even worse was the slight looks of fear on all of their faces. Kakashi had gotten injured again during the mission protecting his pups. Apparently, two whole days were spent with the three being terrified of him dying from a high fever while a random civilian desperately tried to keep him alive. He recovered enough the next day to lead his team back which was uneventful.

  


Normally, his pups would go off to their own homes after such a tedious mission. Right now, though, they all seemed unwilling to leave his side. During the walk back, Naruto had gone so far as to grab onto Kakashi’s arm with zero intention of letting go. Sasuke hovered closer than usual. Sakura latched onto his other hand but still walked normally instead of practically hanging off his arm. Too exhausted to argue and a little concerned for his pups, Kakashi let them do what they wanted to. His minimalistic apartment was slowly gaining extra supplies. Extra blankets, pillows, snacks, games, and books piled in random spots around his home courtesy of Gai and the brats. Kakashi’s home was becoming more of a hangout spot than he’d like. But there was no way he’d turn his pups away.

  


Kakashi took the lead at that moment. He stooped down and allowed Naruto to hop onto his back with some encouragement. He stood up to look at the other two genin, “Sakura, go get the first aid kit. It’s in the bathroom. Sasuke, go put a kettle of water on. I’ll be getting some blankets and pillows with Naruto. Gather in the living room.” With clear direction, they split up to do their tasks. Sakura was the first to come back to the living room with the kit in hand and started dressing some of her own minor wounds. Sasuke came in next, sitting down silently, and allowed his teammate to start addressing his few scrapes. Naruto came in with a huge pile of pillows and blankets. All three genin started on making some kind of nest with a fluffy blanket down on the ground and putting pillows against the sofa as Naruto’s wounds already healed.

  


Kakashi sighed as he made three cups of tea. He didn’t need any himself. Too tired to change, the jonin shrugged off his outerclothes so he was in his undershirt and pants. He carefully balanced the cups as he walked into the living room. All his pups were curled up next to each other with Sakura in the middle. The three genin perked up when he came into sight. Kakashi handed each brat a cup before sitting down himself across from them. Sakura immediately put hers down and crawled forward with the first aid kit. She went straight to work changing some old bandages. Sasuke and Naruto were both watching carefully. Kakashi tiredly nudged his only female student away, “Drink your tea before it gets cold. I’m perfectly fine.” Sakura’s expression turned a tad sour, but she obeyed.

  


Kakashi watched as his pups drank their tea. He ran a hand through his hair although that didn’t accomplish much. He felt restless. Six concerned eyes were watching him. Sasuke masked his distress the best but he was still watching with too much intent for it to be normal. Sakura kept looking at his bandaged stomach with a frown. Naruto was the most obvious with his blatant, teary stare and large frown. If it were any other day, he’d be worried that his students were thinking about trying to take his mask off. Today, though, their worry was too overwhelming to allow for mischief. Kakashi took and put the empty cups off to the side once the tea was gone. His team shifted until he could sit in the middle with his back against the couch.

  


Immediately, he was swarmed. Kakashi blinked slowly as Naruto crawled onto his lap, Sakura snuggled up to his left side, and Sasuke clung to his right hand. This wasn’t the first time they had this kind of reaction, but at least his pups had gone home. Maybe the brats had grown more attached to him since then. Naruto squirmed uncomfortably until he could shove his face into his sensei’s neck. He spoke quietly with a tremble in his voice, “K-Kakashi-sensei…please don’t leave us.” Kakashi hummed deeply and tried to move to look at the blonde boy. Naruto kept his face hidden, “When you got that fever and were just laying there I…I…” The genin clung tighter to the jonin’s neck and hot tears started soaking the dark fabric.

  


His voice shook harder, “I-I was so scared that, that you were gonna die. I, I don’t want you to die.” Naruto abruptly pulled back to look at Kakashi. The Copy Ninja’s eye widened at the utter distress on his student’s face. Naruto shook with tears rolling down his face, “Y-you’re important to me, you know.” Kakashi’s face softened as he felt Sakura push her face into his side and Sasuke moved from clinging to his hand to his arm. He lifted his one unrestrained hand to wipe away the tears rolling down his pup’s face. Kakashi smiled and spoke gently, “Don’t worry, I’m not going anywhere. Not if I can help it.” He allowed Naruto to cling to his neck again, “Listen, this goes for all of you. I will do my best to be there for all of you. Even if someday I’m not your sensei anymore. I’ll be there if you need support, someone to talk to, anything.”

  


As he spoke, Kakashi felt his mind getting drawn back to his own childhood. The crippling loneliness he felt. How awful it was for him to struggle through life without a somewhat stable adult to guide him. Kakashi tugged his pups closer to him. His hands gently rubbed Sakura and Sasuke’s shoulders and he pressed his cheek against Naruto’s head. The three snuggled closer to him and further into the blanket pile. He listened as his other pups started to sniffle and cry too, “I’m sorry for scaring all of you. But it’ll take a lot to keep me down forever.” Later on, he’d blame his next action on his exhaustion or just going on instinct. However, Kakashi knew full well that what he was about to do was something his father did to comfort him as a kid.

  


Rocking the three wouldn’t be an option as they were too big for him to rock all at once. So, he settled for light touches instead. Soft hand strokes on thick hair and rubbing his masked cheek against bright blonde hair. A gentle hum built in his throat as he tried to recall that melody his father used to sing. His voice was a tad horse and breathy from Naruto laying on his chest, “The path has been long and full of strife. So, come rest with me dear pup and I’ll guard you with my life.” He hoped that even if his singing was a tad shaky that it’d be soothing enough, “Let the moon soothe you with its light as we whisper goodnight.” Kakashi felt Sakura nod off first with the weight on his side increasing.

  


“Don’t howl or fuss my pup, I’ll still be here when you wake up.” Naruto fell asleep next directly on his chest. “Hush now and sleep the night away. So, you can run again in the day.” Sasuke fell asleep last. Oddly, it seemed like he needed the most soothing out of the three that the jonin wasn’t going anywhere. Kakashi sighed heavily as he let his head fall back. Gods, how long had it been since he last heard that song let alone sung it? It was a lullaby that supposedly was passed down in his clan. He wouldn’t know for sure because his father was the only other Hatake he ever knew. The wolf coded language seemed to confirm that assumption. Hatakes were represented by wolves. His father had wolf summons. It was strange to think about.

  


Kakashi closed his eyes tiredly. His emotions and mind felt too fried to think anymore. What mattered was that all three of his pups were there and safe. He tugged a blanket to be more over all of them. After such an emotional time, they deserved some good rest. Kakashi wasn’t sure if he would sleep tonight. A desire to keep these kids safe kept him awake. They seemed to be targeted much more than normal genin with Naruto and Sasuke’s abilities. Well, nothing would happen to these pups now that he was in charge of them. They were his responsibility now. And he would take care of them to the best of his abilities even with his own problems bogging him down. Those kids deserved someone to care even a little bit.


End file.
